BMW Venting Machine - First Impressions

It's been hot, humid and still here in Riderland for the past couple of weeks I've been coming home from rides and events soaking wet despite the gear worn that day..........technology to the rescue.......

As an early Fathers Day gift.....I got the new BMW Venting Machine suit ($$$)

I have to admit, they did it right....the outer shell is high strength polymide with reflective thread for night riding. It comes in black/silver and zips together. CE armor knees, elbows, shoulders, back and pockets for optional hip & thigh armor (this is BMW after all) The suit is very light weight but gives a feeling that it will hold up well under any circumstances. Oh, and it kept this old body cool on a 500 miler in 80%-90% humidity and various stop n go through small towns, etc..

I've had most of the the other mesh suits and just didn't feel as comfortable that they would protect and hold together during a bad get off (maybe just me).....anyway, I'm very pleased and would suggest you give them a look/see if you are in the market for this type apparel. The only criticism(?) is it only comes in the black/silver and I thought it might be a few degrees cooler in silver/black, but that's just speculation, felt cool sitting or riding

I just got a BMW Venting Machine too, same reasons as above, and love it. I've got over 500 miles on it and it works swell for keeping the air flowing. But carry lots of water - I was dry and cool but still sweated (it was in the 90's) but I never noticed as the air flow carried it away so fast. I downed two quarts of water on a stop. If you hold the suit up to a light, you can see through it. Stopped in a traffic jam at noon, it did get hot, but I don't know of any other suit that won't. Fit on the jacket is excellent, the pants are a little long, they don't have inseam sizes yet (I have a short inseam for my torso length, with no belly I have a 34" waist but a 29" inseam). Armor is good, and the fit keeps everything in place. I added the hip armor, it stretched the pants a little across the front. The knee pads were noticeable at first on a long ride, but got more comfortable. I'd read a review that said the fabric seemed rough, but it felt fine to me. I can work all the fasteners with gloves on. I got the BMW AirFlow gloves to go with it - they tuck under the sleeves very well (look designed to do that) and carry the suit style pattern. Tucked under the sleeves, I can get airflow up the right sleeve when I flex it, in addition to through it. On the left arm my watch blocks flow up the sleeve. Snapped tight, not as much airflow goes up, but some. Bugs don't get through the mesh - I hit clouds of them at night. The armor looks and feels excellent - the back protector is CE approved which isn't that common on jackets (most have just the elbow and shoulder CE rated). The jacket fits in a very small packet - can't really fold it up tight because of the back armor but it folds very thin, and the pants do too. I wear microfiber wicking shirts, underpants and socks (mixes of UnderArmor, Coolmax and Reebok) under the suit and the combination is very comfortable.

I'm very happy with this - glad I got it, recommend it to you if you can afford it, but the sticker shock is very real. The second choice was a Rev'it suit.

I wore mine for the first time this weekend, low 90's in Houston, and it was incredible. Huge improvement over my perforated Vanson jacket. I understand it works incredibly well with the Marsee Cool Vest underneath, so I'm going to buy one of those too.

It's pricey, but nicely made and worth it if you live in a climate like mine.

I'm interested in this suit and wondered what everyone wore underneath. Do you guys wear jeans and a tee shirt or can you wear shorts?

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Typically Underarmor compression shorts and Underarmor loose gear shirt, or a Reebok or other brand wicking T-shirt. The suit is fairly opaque - nothing shows through. Although if you hold the suit up to the light it looks like a sieve.

:huh I looked at the Santiago, much heavier than the Venting machine, doesn't vent as well, about as heavy as the ralleye II, but a good suit...having said that, the VM jacket and Santiago pants could be a go but you would be giving up some cooling...which is the main point IMO